From Karachi to Kent Station: The Pakistani shopkeeper who learned Irish

Danish Jamshed can be regularly overheard speaking ‘as Gaeilge’ to customers

Danish Jamshed said never found Irish a difficult language to learn and enjoys seeing the reaction from his customers when he uses cupla focail. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

A Pakistani shopkeeper who works in Cork's railway station has taught himself to speak Irish, saying the language is “not as hard as you think it is”.

Danish Jamshed, 41, moved to Ireland from Karachi 15 years ago, first living in Shannon, Co Clare, before relocating to Cork the following year.

Since then, he has become a friendly face at Kent Station, where he can be regularly overheard speaking ‘as Gaeilge’ to customers.

Mr Jamshed told the Irish Examiner he never found Irish a difficult language to learn and enjoys seeing the reaction from his customers when he uses cupla focail.

“I really love languages and never find them too hard. It is really about practice. I can write Irish too," he said.

“Before covid, children were coming to the Gaeltacht in Cork every weekend — they came from Mallow, Tralee and Tipperary. I could hear them speaking to each other in Irish and I asked them about this other language that I didn’t know about, and they told me it was ‘as Gaeilge’.

“I asked them about it, and I got a few words from them, and I began practicing ‘dia duit’ and when customers came in, I started using it with them. The reaction was good.

Then I learned Conas atá tú? and Tá mé go maith — and it went from there. I just kept learning.

“My pronunciation was the most important thing, without that it’s no good.

Danish Jamshed chats as Gaeilge to customers when they call in to Eason's at Kent Station in Cork. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

“I speak some Polish and French and Spanish. I love different languages. I didn’t find the Irish hard, if you have someone you trust to help you and have the motivation then you are ok," the Karachi native said.

“Now I enjoy it so much. I speak in Irish to the customers, people enjoy it — they love it, and they continue talking back to me in Irish. Sometimes I have to stop as I don’t think I am that good, but they think I’m good.”

The 2016 Census found almost 1.8m people said they could speak Irish, while the country currently has 185 gaelscoileanna at primary level, attended by more than 40,000 students, and 31 gaelcholáistí.

Mr Jamshed said he loves living in Ireland and feels very much at home here.

“I love my home. I am going home for some holidays, hopefully in November. But it won’t be permanent. I live here and I love it.

“Before I came here, I got some opinions from others who recommended Ireland. I looked at England and Ireland and I ended up here and have no regrets.

“I am committed to the language and the cupla focail. When I am off, my customers look for me, so that is nice to know.”